=head1 Inessential BarnOwl and Zephyr

=head2 Using BarnOwl

To start C<barnowl>, run the command C<add barnowl; barnowl> at the
prompt on any Athena machine or dialup, such as C<linerva.mit.edu>.

The simplest use of Zephyr is to send personal zephyrs to other
users. To send a zephyr, type C<:> to bring up a command line, and run
the command C<zwrite I<USERNAME>>. You can also start a C<zwrite>
command by simply typing C<z>.

You can then enter your message, and then enter a C<.> on a line by
itself to finish the zephyr. By convention, zephyrs are usually
word-wrapped to 70-character lines or so; Pressing C<M-q> (Alt-q) will
word-wrap the text you've entered for you.

Once you've sent and received zephyrs, you can navigate the message
list with the arrow keys. Press C<d> to mark a message as deleted,
C<u> to undelete it, and C<x> to I<expunge> all messages that have
been marked as deleted.

Instead of entering a C<zwrite> command manually, you can also select
a message in the message list with the arrow keys, and I<reply> to it
using C<r>, which will automatically set up an appropriate C<zwrite>
command.

=head2 Classes and Instances

Most interesting discussion on Zephyr, however, happens on so-called
Zephyr I<classes>. A class is a bit like a chat room in other IM
systems. Anyone can send a zephyr to a class, and anyone who is
subscribed to that class will receive it. There is no security on
classes -- anyone who knows the name of a class can subscribe, and
there is no way to determine who is subscribed to a given class.

To subscribe to a class, use the C<subscribe> command:

    :subscribe CLASSNAME * *

To send a zephyr to a class, use the C<zwrite> command with the C<-c>
option:

    :zwrite -c CLASSNAME

Zephyrs to classes usually have an I<instance> attached. An instance
is a short “topic” or “subject” that indicates the context of a
zephyr. Different instances are often used to multiplex multiple
conversations on a high-traffic class. You can specify an instance
with the C<-i> option to C<zwrite>:

    :zwrite -c CLASSNAME -i INSTANCE

A message without an instance specified will default to the instance
“personal”.

=head3 Common Classes

Some common classes include:

=over

=item help

C<-c help> is a class for asking (and answering) questions on
virtually any topic imaginable. Be sure to use an instance (such as
“linux”, “barnowl”, “campus”, or so on) when asking questions, since
it's a fairly high-traffic class.

=item sipb

C<-c sipb> is where most SIPB members hang out. It's a place for
technical discussion, questions, support, and organizing SIPB events
or projects. You should also always use an instance when sending to
C<-c sipb>.

=item Personal Classes

By convention, nearly every Zephyr user has a "personal" class that is
the same as their username. How this class is used varies from person
to person, but it's often a sort of mini-blog, a place to report what
one is working on or up to, or ask friends questions, or just rant
about something.

=back

=head2 Questions

If you have questions, you can send them via email to C<sipb@mit.edu>,
or via Zephyr to C<-c sipb> (with an appropriate instance).

=cut